Crown prepped twice?

[Moonchilde@2714]

I recently went to a new dentist to have a crown put on a root canal tooth, #18. The tooth was entirely intact except for the filling. At my first visit, he took a mold, prepped the tooth with a post and placed a temporary crown. A small part of the tooth had cracked off when he was drilling. When I got home, the crown got a hole in the top. When I went back the next time, he told me the hole in the crown was because there wasn’t “enough clearance” with the top teeth and that the permanent crown would not fit so he had to do it over. He replaced the same temporary crown after fixing the hole. The third time I saw him, today, he prepped the tooth again. He was doing a lot of drilling. Then he took another mold, put on a new temporary crown and said the permanent crown would be ready in two weeks. Is this normal ? Isn’t it bad for the tooth to be prepped twice, doesn’t that weaken it and make it impossible to replace the crown in the future if necessary ?

 

[Dr M]

It is not necessarily bad to prep it twice. The dentist needs to make sure there is enough space available for the type of crown he is planning to place. If he is unsure, it is better to remove more of the tooth, in order to ensure adequate space. Better to do it prior to placing the crown, then having a crown that does not fit properly.

 

[dental_care]

Repeated tooth prepping for a crown, while not ideal, can occur due to clearance issues, impression inaccuracies, or temporary crown problems; however, it does remove tooth structure and may raise concerns about weakening the tooth and future replacements. Open communication with your dentist is crucial to understand the reasons behind the multiple preps and ensure the long-term health of your tooth, and seeking a second opinion is a reasonable step if you remain uneasy.